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  #1  
Old 9th January 2016, 08:09 PM
Jimmy Jimmy is offline
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Default Altiflex 1

I have recently found an on Altiflex 1 TLR camera in my nans wardrobe which im hoping to get working again (no i hadnt heard of it before)

Ive found out its an old 1937 german made tlr medium foramt camera that can take 120 film. the shutter seems to work well and focus knob moves the lenses well , and apart from some sticking and a bit of rust it all looks good, but i have a problem with the viewfinder and i cant find much info on the camera at the moment.

Its a very basic camera , so i presume it works in much the same way as any other simple TLR camera from this time, but when i look in the viewfinder at the ground glass it is so blurred and out of focus you cant see the image and the focus on the lens does not appear to do anything

when i took the viewfinder and glass off i found the mirror completely loose, the mirror is very marked and old but it does reflect well if i look into it, it is a trapezoid shape. it seems to just sit with the smaller end below the viewing lens and the bigger end against the near side, but does not fix anywhere, but when i do put it into this position it does reflect what the lens is seeing.

when i out the ground glass into place there is the faintest of a blurred image. but ive found if i lift the gtound glass up by about 4 or 5 cm, the image comes into focus and is viewable, and i can focus the lens while im holding it there. but of course its essentially floating in mid air and is not where it should go.

so i wonder if anyones has any idea whats going on or have any info on the camera.

basically the camera looks fine but the ground glass position does not give me a viewing image of anyuse.

thanks in advance!!
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  #2  
Old 10th January 2016, 11:37 AM
John King John King is offline
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I did a search and came up with this http://camera-wiki.org/wiki/Altiflex If the link doesn't work just google 'Altiflex 1'. There is a small box just near the top of the front page with links to the the various models of Altiflex, The model 1 looks very nice indeed, quite a decently built bit of kit.

Last edited by John King; 10th January 2016 at 11:46 AM.
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  #3  
Old 10th January 2016, 04:52 PM
Jimmy Jimmy is offline
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Default thanks

hello, thanks for the link, i did see this i should have mentioned i did a quick google search and found the entries in the camera wikis and a manual for sale for £10 plus a few other things but not much at all apart from that.

i might have to purchase one if they are cheap somewhere to see how a working one would be setup. or try to work it out somehow, Im obviously missing either a holder for the mirror or its the wrong mirror, who knows for now, im currently going to look at similar models to see how their mirrors are setup.

thanks.
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  #4  
Old 10th January 2016, 05:11 PM
Richard Gould Richard Gould is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jimmy View Post
hello, thanks for the link, i did see this i should have mentioned i did a quick google search and found the entries in the camera wikis and a manual for sale for £10 plus a few other things but not much at all apart from that.

i might have to purchase one if they are cheap somewhere to see how a working one would be setup. or try to work it out somehow, Im obviously missing either a holder for the mirror or its the wrong mirror, who knows for now, im currently going to look at similar models to see how their mirrors are setup.

thanks.
Try googling Orphan cameras, the Mike Butkess site, he has manuals for a great many cameras on his site, and is always a first port of call for many people, and the manuals are free to download. Sorry I can't remember the link address but orphan cameras should get you there
Richard
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  #5  
Old 10th January 2016, 06:22 PM
Jimmy Jimmy is offline
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thanks, yeah found it, theres nothing on there i can see!
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  #6  
Old 12th January 2016, 07:10 PM
cesare cesare is offline
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It sounds to me like the camera is complete, but that the image isn't bright enough for you to see - the mirror deterioration won't help but those old mirrors are very delicate, so be careful cleaning it (you can remove silver, or break the glass).

I'd personally remove the focus screen, and with the taking lens on bulb, place it across the film gate and see what the main lens looks like. This will help you judge the brightness through the main lens.

Typically with a TLR the viewfinder lens is faster than the taking lens, but of a worse quality (so say a triotar f/2.8 vs a planar f/3.5 main lens).

I can probably dig out some photos of the inside of a Rolleiflex if that would be any help. The mirror is trapezoidal if I remember correctly, with the small end at the bottom, and the longer edge by the top next to the focus glass. There are often a pair of gates to allow you to judge parallax when you focus.
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Old 12th January 2016, 08:03 PM
Jimmy Jimmy is offline
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yes i do believe the camera is complete, mostly, and i have just realised someone put the viewing screen in upside down which ive changed (you have to screw it in)

but the mirror is a problem, regardless of the condition of it, it cannot just sit where it is loose, there is nothing inside to suggest it fixes anywhere at all. i can balance it behind two little screws for leverage which looks roughly like the right angle, which gives me the image when i delicately replace the viewfinder, but im surely missing something to hold it in place, either something that inserts between the lens and the glass or it may have been glued in somehow?

I have looked at someother TLRs online and they all seem to have either grips or holders to firmy hold the mirror in its rightfull place like youd expect.


Ive also noticed when i can get an image in the viewfinder , when i focus to infinity the image is out of focus, but if i near focus, inifinity comes into focus, its almost the wrong way round!

ive got no clue really, ill have either have to buy another one to compare or pay some money to get it looked at!
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  #8  
Old 12th January 2016, 08:24 PM
Jimmy Jimmy is offline
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The camera, see where the mirror sits (placed in upside down oops) theres nothing to hold it in place!

the name plate is missing as i thought i had to take it off to get into the camera.





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  #9  
Old 12th January 2016, 08:26 PM
Jimmy Jimmy is offline
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Default ahh

Well the images dont seem to be attaching or linking inline , but they are in my folder on my profile
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  #10  
Old 12th January 2016, 10:23 PM
cesare cesare is offline
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Jimmy, that slope at the bottom near the lens looks weird - here is how my Rolleiflex with the focus screen flipped up:

DSCF3178 by Cesare Ferrari, on Flickr

You can clearly see the mirror runs up against the lens at the bottom (it's at infinity) and is at 45 degrees, to turn the light at right angles to reach the focus screen.

If you need to focus near to make infinity come into focus, then the screen is too far from the lens, the registration distance is not correct. This is the right way around, it suggests the mirror needs to be moved forwards (towards the lens) to reduce the distance from lens to focus screen.

I think you need to do some measurement. Retract the lens, open the back, and measure the lens to film plane distance (Push a toothpick into the camera till it hits the front plate, and mark the distance to the film plane). Now from the top, measure the distance the light travels from the lens to the bottom of the 45 degree slope, then vertically up to the focus screen - these should match if the mirror should be attached to the slope.

If the distance is too large, the mirror should be moved forward a bit, so something sits between the mirror and the 45 degree slope (which might be the reason you can't find any obvious way of attaching the mirror?)
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